Kate Middleton’s university friend who shared unseen picture of royal at a flat party opens up about her ‘magical time’ at St Andrews with the future queen

The Princess of Wales’ former university colleague has opened up about the photo she recently shared of a teenage Kate at a party – adding that she had a ‘magical time’ with the future queen.

Laura Warshauer, who was placed in the same halls as the Princess during their time at the University of St Andrews, delighted fans last month when she shared an unseen photo of the royal family during her student days.

The photo was taken at a party in a flat in Hope Street, where Kate ended up in her second year of university.

The mother-of-three, 42, met her future husband Prince William in 2001 during their first week as a psychology student at Scottish university – before later switching to a degree in art history.

Discussing the photo recently, Laura said she “remembers this party like it was yesterday” and decided to give more context to the celebrations as many people had messaged her about her experiences with Kate.

The singer and songwriter made one Instagram role and said, “I remember this frat party like it was yesterday. We were both freshmen at the University of St. Andrews.

“We were celebrating, his name was Ollie, we called him ‘hairy Ollie’ and we were celebrating his 19th birthday.”

For the event, the princess wore a cream turtleneck and embraced her natural curls.

The royal kept her makeup minimal and was pictured wearing a hint of brown eyeshadow and blush.

Kate’s accessories were equally understated, consisting of a pair of pearl stud earrings and a thin blue hair scrunchie on her wrist.

The princess and Laura – who wore a black V-neck jumper – were pictured holding brownie bites and smiling at the camera.

The photo was taken during the Princess’s first year of university, where she lived in St. Salvators Hall of Residence and met the Prince of Wales.

Laura said she had a ‘magical time’ in St Andrews with the future queen and her peers, adding that it felt like they were in a ‘bubble’.

Laura added: ‘So many of you have been asking about this photo so I thought I would share a little more about my stories from that magical time in St Andrews.

‘It really was a bubble that we all lived in and felt removed from the outside world.’

Royal fans raved about the image and the backstory, with one writing: “I’m sure Catherine was the sweetest person around and she has always been so beautiful.”

Another wrote: ‘Awww, what a great memory to have.’

A third said: ‘Thank you so much for sharing. I’m so happy to see these photos and hear from her friends. I hope you’re still good friends with her. I love my elementary school friends that I have and I’m 66 years old!’

A fourth commented: ‘St Andrews was a beautiful bubble. I graduated there in 1997 and made some of my best friends there. Precious times.’

Laura first shared the image to show her support for the Princess of Wales while she was undergoing cancer treatment, but it caught the attention of royal fans last month.

In the caption, she wrote, “Sending love to Kate Middleton, the future Queen of England and my college roommate!

‘This was us at an apartment party in Hope Street. I have the best college memories with Kate.

“She is the kindest, most caring, down-to-earth, genuine person, and it is incredible to see her shine so brightly and inspire the world with her compassion and courage.”

In 2011, Laura told the Mail that she lived at St Salvator’s Hall during the royal couple’s first year at St Andrews University and watched them fall in love.

The singer – who returned to the US after graduating – said the couple had instant chemistry and had fallen in love months before the now well-documented fashion show in March 2002, when William saw Kate modeling a sheer brief and described her as ‘ is called’.

She explained, “One of my favorite memories was in November [first] year and we were invited to a Harry Potter party in this castle.

‘We all got on a big bus to go there and I remember Kate and William dancing together all night.

‘There was a charity auction where you could bid on the person for the day and Will paid £200 for Kate. She was dressed in her school uniform and stood with all of us at the bottom of these stone steps.

“No one else won Kate that night. They already had that connection.’